That Ram accepts the terrible end of Athilan as he does, first in great depression evolving into serenity, is likely to bother some people. The notion that a leader would know that someday his people will be wiped out in a cataclysm and yet will do nothing to save them is hard to accept. Silverberg is trying to show a culture that seems alien to modern readers, and passivity in the face of doom when much could be done to save people is bizarre enough to be alien. On the other hand, the Ancient Greeks would have recognized most of Ram's sentiments. Striving to better oneself is Ram's principal credo, even in the face of death. Knowing that life must end should not stop individual peoples or entire cultures from persevering and improving their lot.

The issue of slavery is pointedly discussed by Roy in his...